Beware of the Bride

Yet the hilarious promos of new show,Looteri Dulhan on Imagine TV,have raised the hopes of many small screen addicts to have some fun. Looteri Dulhan is the story of a family of five thugs from Haryana. They con eligible men,get the daughter Billo married to them and loot the groom even before the wedding night is over.

Interestingly,the show — going on air on March 28 — is not pure fiction. “I was watching a real life crime news show when they narrated the story of a girl who would marry men,con them and escape with the booty. The concept stayed with me and I decided to develop it into a soap,” confesses Rakesh Paswan,its writer.

Paswan has since then spent most part of his time moulding and defining the various characters. Billo is clever,but comes with an emotional baggage. Billo’s brother,Angrez Singh,is married to Dilli Singh and they both add a streak of humour to the show. Like in any con story,there is a cop trying to nab the culprits,in this case,he happens to be Inspector Diamond Singh.

As Billo,Krishna Gokani easily slips into the roles of the various brides by donning different looks. “On one occasion,I am a Punjabi girl and on other,a banjaran; I slip out of a burqa to look like an innocent geek with a pair of thick glasses. I have to get my dialect and body language right. But,that’s what I love about my role,” Gokani says.

Apart from the humour,what also sets this show apart from the other saas-bahu sagas is that it attempts to depict the female protagonist in shades of grey. “It is a challenge to make a villainous character,who is central to the storyline and endearing to the audience,” points out Paswan. Meanwhile,Vishal O Sharama,who plays Diamond Singh,calls Looteri Dulhan a ‘Manmohan Desai-type show’ where the focus is wholesome family entertainment.

The efforts made by the makers of Looteri Dulhan seems sincere. However,it remains to see whether the show too will succumb to the TRP race.